I Can Be An Espada Too!
by 10char
Summary: Ichigo dies. Ichigo becomes an Arrancar. Ichigo learns Spanish. Join Ichigo  in spirit  as he learns the basics of being an Espada.
1. Chapter 1: Wake Up Calls, Reality Checks

**I Can Be An Espada Too!**

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><p>AN: New project of mine. Don't expect much in the area of romance. Semi-crack and lulz in this story.

Shameless plug-in! Head on over and read Dog Days! :DDDD?

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><p><strong>Chapter 1: Wake Up Calls and Reality Checks<strong>

It was quiet.

Too quiet.

Something was missing that should have happened at just around this time, but he couldn't quite recognize what exactly that something was.

The click of a door opening resounded in his sensitive ears.

The sound of footstep got louder as he felt a hand pull the top of his blanket away.

"Good morning, Ichigo-kun!"

His fist shot out and clocked whoever was waking him up.

Ah, _that_ was it.

Ichigo's eyes blinked blearily as he saw the figure clutching his face and crumpled to the ground from the corner of his eye, and scowled.

Still disoriented and unaware of his surroundings, which consisted of a simple, white room completely devoid of happiness, he pushed away his simple, white blanket and swung his legs over the side of the simple, white bed. His eyes cracked open slowly-

-Then shot open in horror at the figure on the ground.

"Gin!"

Surprise turned to anger as he narrowed his eyes, and scowled.

"_Gin!_"

Slowly the fox-faced Shinigami pushed himself up, grin still present as he clutched at his profusely bleeding nose.

"Hey, id dat eddy way do greed sub un'!" he questioned and healed himself as he got up.

"Oh. I thought you were-" Ichigo shook his head and scowled. "That's not important! What are you doing here!" he spat, scowling at the unblemished Shinigami.

"To wake ya up, of course." he replied nonchalantly like it was obvious. It kind of was in hindsight, but that was beside the point.

Scowling, his body language seemed to convey the desire to strangle a traitor.

Gin held up his hands and waved them to placate the angry teen.

"Wait a sec! You don't wanna be late on yer first day, do ya?"

Ichigo stopped scowling and blinked.

"Huh? The hell are you going on about?"

Brows furrowed, the teen continued to stay tense, scowl slowly reforming, despite Gin's attempts at making a friendly atmosphere.

He watched warily like a sc-Owl as Ichimaru fluttered about the room with stupid cat posters and other such genial decorations.

"Aren't those Christmas lights a little out of season?" the boy noted with a half-scowl.

"Based on the circumstances, ya won't just instantly have all the ability ta be a model Espada." the ex-Captain instantly resumed and ignored the valid criticism on modern materialization culture of holiday tradition. Ichigo gaped indignantly.

"I'm a human, dumbass! Do you see a Hollow hole on me?" he blurted, full scowl present on his face. Gin took a thoughtful expression, losing his grin for a few seconds.

"Ya got me there. I'd have thought there'd be one in the middle of yer head. Where yer brain should be. Because I'm implyin' that you're stupid. Heh." he pointed out. Ichigo scowled.

"Ah, I'm jus' messin' with ya. No... I don't see a Hollow hole," he paused, grin widening slightly. "...at the moment."

Before Ichigo could react, Gin continued.

"Shoot to kill, Shinso."

The teen's scowl froze as the blade pierced the middle of chest. He cried out somewhat effeminately.

After a few seconds, with his life flashing before his eyes and... nothing hammering, he tentatively opened his eyes to see the blade in there, but felt no pain and saw no bleeding.

Gin's teeth flashed for a second when he retracted the blade, causing Ichigo to yelp and fall back onto the bed with a 'pomf,' releasing a breath he didn't know he was holding.

Experimentally, the "human" fingered the tear in his shirt and shuddered when he felt nothing as his finger went through his chest.

"Hey now, ya shouldn't do that in front of others. I understand teens get urges..." Gin trailed off, breaking the awkward silence before Ichigo could go fist deep.

His face turned as red as a strawberry. "W-w-what the fuck! I don't- I'm not-"

He suddenly centered himself and exhaled deeply trying to calm himself and ignored Gin's wide grin. Ichigo scowled.

Reaching up to his face, he felt what appeared to be the upper-right portion of his Hollow mask ending at the upper-row of teeth. It surrounded his right eye, but didn't connect at the side parallel to his nose. It felt weightless on his head.

"How'd this happen...?" he questioned in utter resignation.

"Well, ya died-" Ichigo winced. "-an' turned into a full Hollow. We were able ta find, subdue, an' use the Hōgyoku ta turn ya into what ya are now."

Gin moved closer and leered.

"Don't want to keep Aizen-sama waitin', right?"

Ichigo shot up, brimming with anger.

"No way I'll join Aizen!" he hissed with a scowl. Gin's smile widened at his scowl.

"Thought you'd say that."

Before Ichigo could slug Gin and bolt out of the room, the ex-Captain's hand gripped his hair as they were face to face.

The silver-haired Shinigami's eyes popped open, revealing a striking, sky blue color. Ichigo was absorbed into staring straight into them by the simple fact that they were open, which was a big mistake.

"_LOOK INTO MY EYES._" he singsonged in a deeper and much more creepy tone.

With that, Ichigo slumped down, knocked out by Gin's Hakufuku.

Hoisting the Arrancar over his shoulder, he strolled out to pay Aizen a visit. To those who gave him strange looks for carrying the unconscious Arrancar, he waved and smiled.

"Heya, Aizen-sama-dono. Guess we should get started on Ichigo, huh?"

Aizen smiled politely and nodded. "You took your time." he stated.

"Couldn't resist havin' a chat with the boy. Very amusin' kid."

"Very well," Aizen flashed down to stand beside Gin (But in reality was standing next to him the entire time). "Let us begin. Szayel."

Inspecting equipment that had been transported to the room, the scientist walked over to Aizen, seemingly satisfied with the status of his tools.

"Everything is ready, Aizen-sama." he informed, grinning at the prospect of testing on the hybrid.

Aizen simply smiled wider.


	2. Chapter 2: Classmates

**I Can Be An Espada Too!**

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><p>AN: Hm, I'll use the names and spellings that I'm comfortable with, and if you would like me to change them to something more Wiki-oriented, or how you see them romanized, let me know. It get's a little dark and creepy in this chapter, but I've got some more humor planned in the future. EDIT: Oh yeah, Ichigo's arm tattoo is the same as the one he has during his Final Getsuga Tensho.

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><p><strong>Chapter 2: Classmates<strong>

"Rise, Kurosaki Ichi-"

Standing right next to the bed, Ulquiorra was surprised when he was punched in the face, though the emotion only flickered in his eyes for a few milliseconds.

Ignoring the pain, his High-Speed Regeneration took care of his dislocated jaw from the punch hitting just the right area, making it seem as if it was done on purpose, or very lucky. He suspected the former.

The Quatro Espada realized he was not warned such a thing would happen and noted he was asked by Gin personally to wake up the trash-turned-Arrancar for today.

Narrowing his eyes, he quickly returned focus to the task at hand.

Ichigo was completely oblivious to having done such a thing and groaned, feeling extremely lightheaded, and sported a massive headache and blurry vision.

He turned to stare blearily at the pale figure with green tear lines below his eyes, in front of him.

"Who... you...?" he mumbled

"Ulquiorra Cifer, Quatro Espada." he informed, voice monotonous. "You are to report to Aizen-sama for further instruction within the hour."

And with that, he left the room. Blinking slowly, the teen hauled himself and limped to the simple, white bathroom.

Staring into a mirror, he noticed his mask fragment had three red stripes on it, and that he had jagged black stripes going down his left arm.

He groaned. "Great, if people see this they'll definitely see me as a thug or something..."

Taking care of his morning rituals, he wore what appeared to be an inverse of his Bankai clothing. How original.

Walking at a leisurely pace, he managed to arrive at the throne room within thirty minutes and saw the three Captains, a bunch of Arrancars, and what appeared to be-

"Ishida! Chad! Inoue!" he exclaimed, jaw hanging open.

"Gin!" was yelled by said Shinigami, garnering weird looks from everyone.

The Quincy-turned-Arrancar sighed, Orihime waved, and Chad nodded.

"Geez, Kurosaki. At least try to stop making unnecessary outbursts in front of our benefactors." Ishida adjusted his glasses in the progress. The Quincy was no stranger to white-colored clothes and went all out, using a single-shoulder cape draped over his right shoulder, a glove on his left hand, and many other eccentricities. He had a blue cross tattoo on the top of his right hand.

Ichigo would never admit it outside the confines of his mind, but he thought Ishida looked pretty _badass_.

"Good morning, Kurosaki-kun!" enthused the strawberry blond. She wore a white blouse that connected to a white cloak, that was black on the inside. There was a black strip that went down diagonally on her waist, just above a circular opening on her skirt that revealed a flowing inner dress.

"Ichigo." the gentle giant greeted. He wore the standard uniform of the Espada with short sleeves, and opted for slacks.

"Bite me, Ishida," Ichigo groused. "So what are you three doing here?"

Orihime chose to answer for everyone.

"Well I've been here for a while, and Ishida-kun and Sado-kun arrived the same time you did. I'm glad you're all here, it's been kind of lonely here by myself," she pouted, but then instantly resumed her bubbly nature.

Slowly nodding, he sat next to Chad.

"Now that we have gotten introductions out of the way," Aizen began. "I have called you all here to give you details on your education here in Hueco Mundo. Included with the Arrancar and Hollow training, we will continue with your High School education during this period of time. Any questions?"

Ichigo raised a hand to gain the Shinigamis' attention.

"Is that really necessary? I don't really see the point of that." he noted. Gin chose to answer the Arrancar.

"Well, but of course. We don't want any of our Espada ta be delinquents. That's jus' not appropriate."

Everyone nodded emphatically. Ichigo scowled, but then frowned once more.

"We're all gonna be made into Espada?"

"Not quite," Aizen began. "...It depends on how much you all improve during this period of time."

"Now then, everyone. Introduce yourselves." commanded Aizen. "As you may know, my name is Aizen Sōsuke, king of Hueco Mundo-" Barragan scoffed silently. "-and what you would say, the Headmaster."

Gin stood up. "Hey everyone. The name is Ichimaru Gin an' I teach ya guys the basics of anythin' related ta Arrancar, the world around 'em, an' any other thing that amuses or interests me."

The blind Shinigami was next. "Kaname Tōsen. I am the Head Disciplinary Officer, guidance counselor, and Head Chef and meal provider for you four."

"..."

There was silence and everyone turned to look at the sleeping Espada with brown unkempt hair. He was leaning back into his chair, slumped and breathing evenly. A young-looking female Arrancar with light green hair to the right of him pulled back her hand and chopped him at the neck.

"WAKE UP STARRK, YOU LAZY ASS!"

His eyes bugged open and he clutched at his throat, hacking and wheezing.

He moaned piteously while cursing 'Lilynette', which was probably the child Arrancar's name.

"The hell are you two doing...?" mumbled Ichigo irritably.

When his breathing evened out, did the Espada speak, though quite hoarsely.

"What a pain..." he bemoaned. "My name is Coyote Starrk, Primero Espada, and this kid beside me is no one important-"

She punched his shoulder.

"...I mean, her name is Lilynette Gingerbuck." he amended. "We don't do anything."

Ichigo and Ishida pinched the bridges of their noses simultaneously.

To the left of Starrk sat an elderly Espada.

"I am Barragan Louisenbairn, Segundo Espada-" he mumbled the next part, something about 'kings' and 'damn Shinigami'. "I shall teach Etiquette and Mannerisms expected of Arrancar or Espada, and History."

A dark-skinned woman then stood up wearing an Arrancar uniform that... didn't leave much to the imagination.

Keeping in mind that the woman could probably easily slaughter him, Ichigo reminded himself that her eyes were above her nose, not below them. Though that was slightly straining on his mental fortitude seeing how that area was covered.

"My name is Tia Harribel, and I am the Tercera Espada. I shall act as a counselor specializing in mental health and relations between student and staff."

Her gaze landed on Ichigo who shrinked away slightly at her eyes narrowing slightly.

The pale Espada then stood up.

"Hi Ulqui-kun!"

Ichigo, a blue-haired Espada, and some others, snickered at the ridiculous nickname.

'Ulqui-kun' focused his reiatsu above those lower in status to him who had joined in the mockery, fully expressing his killing intent, if it were allowed by Aizen. Ichigo shuddered slightly.

Sending an ineffective death glare towards the woman, he introduced himself.

"I am _Ulquiorra_-" adding slight emphasis to the name. "-Cifer, Quatro Espada. I will wake the students and inform them of changes pertaining to the schedule. I shall also teach Mathematics and English."

A tall Espada sat at Ulquiorra's left, wearing a modified Arrancar uniform with a large, spoon-like hood. Ichigo stifled a snicker at how stupid it looked.

"Nnoitra Jiruga, Quinto Espada. I ain't wastin' my time with you shits." he sneered.

"As if you know anything, beyond how to be a punk." Ichigo retorted scathingly, indignant with the insult.

"As if some kid like you can back that up, you little-"

"Gentlemen." Aizen interrupted, voice polite but venomous. They both silenced.

"Nnoitra will simply be a sparring partner, like all the other Espada. Feel free to discuss between each other during those moments _only_."

A tense silence then hung in the air for a moment, that could be cut with an over-sized, black and white kitchen knife with cloth handle. Both nodding in agreement begrudgingly with Aizen, the brown-haired Shinigami gestured to the next Espada to continue.

"The name's Grimmjow Jaegarjaques," he drawled lazily in a slouched position. Straightening up he leaned forward now sporting a wide grin. "I teach Physical Education."

All four of them shuddered slightly. Ishida coughed in the awkward silence.

Startling the students, a dark-skinned Espada jumped to his feet. The other Espada looked unsurprised, and even bored.

"I am Zommari Rureaux, Séptimo Espada, and loyal Hollow to His Majesty, God-King Aizen!" In a much more calmer voice, he continued, eyes still fiery with passion. "I am another Disciplinary Officer and counselor, specializing in stress and relaxation."

Standing up as Zommari returned to his seat, a pink-haired Espada cleared his throat with a flourish of his hand, flick of his hair, flash of his glasses, and smile.

"I... am Szayel Aporro Granz. Octavo Espada and Vice-President of the Hollow Research and Developement Institute. I will instruct you four in all the areas of Science." he dramatized with a mad glint in his eyes and wide smile.

Ishida paled with a look of utter horror on his face. Images of a demented clown and giant, golden baby flashed in his mind. Ichigo was in a similar state with similar memories, but to a lesser extent of horror, having never actually been directly involved with the Captain of the 12th Division.

"I am Aaroniero Arruruerie, Octavo Espada." began an Espada with a cylindrical head, covered by a mask with eight holes; four on the left and right side in a vertical line. "I shall help Szayel teach Biology."

"Oi, I'm the Décimo Espada, Yammy Llargo. I ain't teaching you guys nothing. Suerte!" He grinned and laughed in an amused manner. Ichigo instantly disliked him.

As Yammy sat down, Aizen then addressed the four students.

"Now that the introductions are over, you are all free to retire to your dwellings. Schooling begins tomorrow for the new Arrancar. Meeting adjourned."

"Be sure ya all remember everything and commit it to memory. It'd be a shame if you students forgot this information, eh, Ichigo-kun?" Gin added, clearly amused, though with a slightly darker tone.

The orange-headed Arrancar rubbed his right temple, as a slight hammering then pulsed uncomfortably in his head.

"Uh... yeah." Ichigo replied awkwardly. Pausing for a second, he continued with a glare.

"Also, don't call me _kun._ It's freakin' weird."

Gin smiled. "Oh? I'll try to remember that, but things like that just get wiped from my mind sometimes."

Rolling his eyes, he froze abruptly, having now remembered something.

"WAIT! What happened to my family!"

Displeasure flashed across Aizen's features for a blink, and quickly composed itself.

"Ah, no need to worry. They're perfectly fine. They could visit sometime, if you would like, though things are a bit hectic at the moment. I shall inform you of any changes, should they occur."

Nodding in relief, he finally walked over to his friends to catch up. Aizen was always right, and always honest.

As far as he remembered.


	3. Chapter 3: For I'm a Thinking Captain

**I Can Be An Espada Too!**

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><p>AN: Sorry for taking a while to update, used most of my free time to play DC Universe Online, which I recently downloaded. Fun stuff, and was further addicted to Skyrim, which is extremely awesome. There's just a lot on my plate right now, and not enough time. Dangai Precipice World time slowdown, plz?

Plus I'm very lazy. Btw, if you know where I got the title from, you win absolutely nothing. 'Cause I'm broke.

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><p><strong>Chapter 3: For<strong> **I'm a Thinking Cap...tain!**

A tall, lanky Espada walked into Ichigo's room this time. It was the morning– however you could do that in a land where it was always night, but what _Aizen-sama_ says goes– and for some reason, Ulquiorra had delegated the tasks of waking and informing the brat to him.

Nnoitra had a scowl glued to his face as he ambled to the orange-haired brat's room. He couldn't believe he had to play babysitter for the damn kid, while the others had been able to wake on time. It was as miserable as having to do so for _Gin_.

Reaching the room, he marched up to the bed and raised his foot.

"Oi! Wake up, you little shit!"

At first, the teen rose normally, but once the Quinto Espada had thrust said foot towards Ichigo, something seemed to have snapped or triggered inside of him on reflex.

Grabbing the foot, he tugged on it, sending the spoon-head to the floor, cursing and yelling in surprise. Reinforcing his grip by holding onto Nnoitra's lower leg, he swung the Espada over and out the window above his bed.

Blinking slowly, with his eyelids never widening more than cracks, he looked side-to-side in a similarly sluggish speed with confusion.

Furrowing his eyebrows, Ichigo thought for a second that he heard something similar to an impact, but waved it off as he did his morning rituals on his top-floor room. Around 330 meters high and an extremely painful drop, if one were to ever have the misfortune to fall from that height.

He left the bathroom refreshed and ready for school.

Wherever it was.

He sighed in frustration. Honestly, shouldn't someone have been sent to tell him where it was? He decided to ask around or see Aizen about it.

Marching towards the throne room, he was ticked off by how everyone he saw during his walk were mere mindless servants. Reaching the room, he peered in to see Aizen in light conversation with Gin. Clearing his throat to make himself known, Aizen looked down on him with an eyebrow raised ever so slightly, and Gin looked amused.

"Ah, Ichigo! Shouldn't ya be off to Homeroom?"

He frowned. "No one was around to inform me or anything."

Gin tilted his head sllightly and smirked. "Oh? That's interestin'."

"It is of no matter," began Aizen. "We were about to leave and inform all of you about today. Come with us if you would like, as it would be the simplest solution."

Nodding, The three of them walked to the right of the exit, the opposite of where Ichigo had entered.

"So how's life treatin' ya?" Gin asked casually.

"'S fine. Haven't done much." he muttered. Small talk wasn't his specialty, but Gin seemed to make up for it with sheer volume.

"Oh, how boring, but I guess that's expected seein' as it's only been a day. There's plenty ta do 'round here if you know where to look. The Espada are all amusin' folks if you know the right buttons to push, like, say, throwing Nnoitra out of a window."

Ichigo blinked. "Huh?"

The silver-haired ex-Captain simply waved it off. "Oh, just me goin' on about nothin'." he tilted his head and raised a finger. "Though if I were ya, I'd try to avoid the Quinto for a while."

Furrowing his eyebrows, he wondered what exactly Gin meant, but his thoughts were interrupted abruptly.

"Gentlemen, we have arrived."

Looking around, it looked almost exactly like a normal classroom. In the front of the classroom was a green chalkboard with brown areas on the outline for holding and tacking things onto. There was a clock above it, and pale green walls. It seemed to be one of the only colored rooms in Las Noches.

Eyes widening, he moved to the front to see what appeared to be his Zanpakutō, which was in it's Bankai form as well, with it's black blade, manji-shaped tsuba, and chain. It also now had a sheathe with a stylized flame design at the end of both faces of it. Grabbing it, he placed it inside of the black sash on his waist.

'Oi, old man, you there?'

Hearing no answer, he frowned, but shrugged it off.

Seeing Chad, Ishida, and Orihime, he waved and moved to sit next to them. For some reason there were more than four seats, but Ichigo paid it no mind. He raised an eyebrow when Gin also occupied a chair next to them, and decided to creep out Ishida, who grimaced lightly. Smirking at his rival's discomfort, he then gave his attention to their leader and benefactor along with everyone else.

"As you may know, not all of you will need to take some of the classes. The purpose of today is to understand your capabilities and areas that need special attention. Your opponent in all of this will be me."

Among all of the eye widening, Ichigo smirked, unsurprised. He was actually looking forward to the challenge. Ishida raised his hand.

"But what about Ichimaru-sempai?"

"How come ya only get so respectful in front of Aizen, Ishida-kun?" pouted the aforementioned ex-Captain. His answer was an elbow to the ribs, which caused the Shinigami to clutch his sides, hunched over slightly in a pitiful manner.

"I've decided ta just watch, anyway..." he muttered weakly. Aizen lips quirked up, but the smile never reached his eyes.

"If you would all hold on then."

Aizen held out his hand, which everyone held onto a moment later in a circle. In a blink of an eye, they were far, far away from Las Noches. The shunpo was completely soundless.

Ichigo felt a small headache that cleared up a few seconds later, while Ishida and Chad looked slightly green. Orihime held a hand to her mouth, and forced down her nausea.

"Now then, shall we begin?" Aizen stated. "I will battle Uryu, Yasutora, Inoue, and finally Kurosaki. Understood?"

Ichigo scowled at being last, but nodded along with the others.

Straightening up, Ishida walked a sufficient distance away from Aizen.

Taking the initiative, dark blue spirit particles condensed in his outstretched hand and was thrown towards their leader in a shape resembling a miniature spear, having not formed a fletching. Zooming towards the Shinigami, Aizen simply sidestepped it, leaving a fist-sized hole that penetrated deeply into the ground, as opposed to an explosion.

The battle continued in this manner with Ishida speeding up his attacks and Aizen dodging and then using his blade to break them preemptively. He would Sonido shakily, from having to switch from from Hirenkyaku to this new form of high-speed movement.

"Interesting. Building on the ability to gather the reiatsu around you rather than normal methods. I would like to see you preform your Hollow abilities. Begin."

Resuming the battle, Ishida pulled back his arm, and condensed reiatsu to coat his fist like a glove, albeit shakily, from within.

"Bala!"

Sending it, Aizen lifted a hand and swatted it away. Continuing with the demonstration, Ishida moved on, slightly miffed at Aizen's casualness and ease in stopping his attacks.

Forming a simple Cero into his hand, he concentrated on increasing the overall piercing power of it to the fullest.

"Cero!"

Releasing it, it was similar to one of his arrow attacks, but on a much larger scale. Aizen raised his blade and was pushed back imperceptibly an inch at the formidable penetrating power of his attacks, which focused more on precision as opposed to large-scale damage.

Aizen nodded. "Good. You will take the normal schedule, including a class for using the reiatsu within you."

Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Ishida bowed. "Understood, sir."

Next it was Chad, who had lumbered up to walk in an equal distance away from Aizen that Ishida had been in. Clenching his gloved fists, he brought them up and began to exude a swirling layer of electrical blue reiatsu from each hand. Reeling back his right arm, the energy concentrated into his fist, which he was then thrust forward to unleash a massive cero.

Holding up his blade horizontally, in a guarding position, the energy diverged around the Zanpakutō as Aizen waited out the blast. Following up on his attack, Chad moved onto hand-to-hand and assaulted the Shinigami with an assortment of punches and kicks, all holding impressive amounts of power behind them. Aizen would blocked punches and kicks with ease to test their strength, and generally flashed and avoided most of the barrage.

Crackling energy flared to life on the fingertips of his clawing left hand. Instead of building on within his hand, the reiatsu crackled violently on the outside. Thrusting it forward with a cry, a boom reverberated in the air as the Bala jetted to Aizen.

Raising his sword once again, he used both hands to hold the attack back. The sound of a punch of Sonido allowed Aizen to swivel around to block a kick with his katana held in a reverse grip.

"Hadō #1. Shō."

Pointing a finger in the middle of Chad's chest, blue light pulsed outwards, sending an invisible force to push him back an inconceivable distance away, with only a level one spell. Shakily rising, Chad preformed another perfect Sonido to return to Aizen, who had once again raised his hand, signaling the end of the test.

"Excellent. It seems that your former abilities have followed with you, and you have focused on them, similar to Ishida, and I presume all the others have. You have great control over your Hollow abilities, most likely due to the nature of your former abilities as well. You shall take higher levels of training in your Hollow abilities and official training on your hand-to-hand combat, along with your other classes."

"Thank you, sir."

Orihime slowly rose up meekly, completely nervous and intimidated with the thought of sparring with their powerful leader. With her head down, she quickly shuffled over to her position away from Aizen.

Looking up, she saw that Aizen's countenance was still seemingly pleasant.

"Please," began Aizen. "There is no need to be nervous. Simply preform the abilities you are comfortable with to your fullest extent. Perhaps you would like me to take on another form?"

Her head popped up, eyes sparkling in wonder. "Oh! You have an animal form? Can you turn into something like a butterfly?"

For a second his smile seemed a little more glassy, with an eye twitching minutely in a mix of surprise, confusion, and shock.

"...You are mistaken. I simply meant to use Kyoka Suigetsu to create an illusion of an enemy, or object of your despise."

She nodded in understanding, and closed her eyes, brows furrowing in thought. Setting her fist under her chin, she hummed absentmindedly. The students leaning forward ever so slightly, intrigued with the idea that Orihime could ever dislike someone. Laughing nervously, she rubbed the back of her head.

"I'm sorry Aizen-sama, it's really hard for me to find something I hate. I see all life as important and something I couldn't take away."

Slightly unsurprised, the students then turned to observe Aizen who looked as if he also expected such an answer.

"Then tell me. Many others will be out to take your life at any opportunity. Even in Las Noches, Hollows will betray Hollows for the sake of power and even as a simple whim. If all life is important, shouldn't your own be as well? Listen to your baser instincts and you will see this to be a fact, as self-preservation is in your nature."

Frowning, she was visibly troubled with Aizen's words.

"No, that's- I...well..."

That is alright. We shall work more on your combat abilities once you are more resolved in preforming them. Kurosaki."

Said Arrancar was now in the middle of stretching and was smirking slightly, looking pretty forward to the fight.

During his wait, he was slightly absorbed in seeing how his leader fought, and was disappointed to have seen no weakness, other than his casualness, which only attested to his skill since his friends were definitely at the level of strength of the lower Espada.

Smirking slightly, he walked over to his designated position and drew his Zanpakutō. Ichigo was slightly smug when he saw Aizen do the same, preemptively. Aizen beckoned Ichigo to begin the fight with his free hand.

Attempting Shunpo, he was surprised at how little it traveled. Trying again, he put as much force as he could put into it and flashed directly in front of Aizen. Swinging down his blade, he met steel as sparks were created from the clash and continued his barrage with a battlecry.

Driving Aizen back, he was quick and precise, though Aizen never swung back. Feeling miffed that the Shinigami was still holding back, Ichigo stepped back and charged dark reiatsu into his sword. Swinging down, he preformed one of his most powerful attacks.

"Getsuga-"

Midswing, the energy pulsed out in an arcing wave of energy, carving into the ground and screeching in the air.

"-Tensho!"

It was much weaker than what he expected, though it seemed to do its job. Smoke covering the damaged area, he waited for Aizen to appear, and hoped he was able to at least damage their leader. Seeing the Shinigami a few seconds later caused Ichigo to curse and scowl.

Dusting off his shoulder, Aizen smirked a little with a slightly titled head.

"If I didn't know any better it would seem like you were trying to kill me. Good. Definitely has some power, but much less than what I would expect from you. Preform a cero."

Huffing lightly, he pointed a hand, going by instinct, based on how he had done them during the periods he had become forcefully Hollowfied by that damn "horse".

Three beams coalesced into a small sphere as they circled on a plane vertical to the ground, clockwise. Growing in size and spiritual pressure.

"Cero!"

And with a flash, the cero was shot forward and... fizzled a few feet away from Aizen.

Face reddening deeply from hearing clapping and barely suppressed laughter, he did not dare turn towards the peanut gallery.

Orihime sat next to Gin, who both were clapping and giving words of praise. Ishida held a hand to his mouth, as he tried to control himself. Chad continued to be stoic, but sported a small smile.

"Oh, Kurosaki. Very impressive sparklers." the four-eyed Arrancar mocked as Ichigo attempted them a couple more times, producing similar sparks of varying size and amount.

"Kiss my ass." he grunted, gritting his teeth in frustration. Switching to Bala, which was an ability he has never used or attempted, he hoped his 'Hollow Bullet' would actually do the trick.

Condensing reiatsu within his fist, he punched out, only to create a flash of light and a loud pop, similar to a miniature firework.

Ishida and Chad joined into the clapping.

He began to grip his hair and couldn't take their mocking anymore.

"What the hell! Why isn't this working!"

"I think I may know the answer." Aizen interjected, gaining everyone's attention as the others stopped clapping. Orihime and Gin fought to create the last clap for a short moment.

"As with any ability or power, you must understand the principles and meanings of each move." he began. "Like with your Zanpakutō, you have to know the names of your Hollow abilities to use them at full strength and effectively. I expect you know what this means."

Ichigo thought for a moment as he was presented with a new problem. His eyes widened in disbelief.

No way.

It couldn't be. It was too ridiculous.

"I have to learn... Spanish?"

Giving his full attention to Ichigo, Aizen smiled.

"Correct."

The teenager gripped the bridge of his nose, a scowl prominent on his face.

"But why Spanish!"

Their leader thought for a second.

"I could tell you, but it is extremely complicated and a reason dating back to the beginning of time. It would take hours for you to fully comprehend it."

"Fine, I'll learn." he grouched, crossing his arms. A thought crossed his mind. "Oi, you all are fluent in Spanish?"

Addressed towards the students, they all nodded.

"I'm multilingual." answered Ishida.

"I was raised with the language as part of my culture growing up." informed Chad.

"Si!" beamed Orihime.

Ichigo frowned. "So who'll teach me?"

"Ah. I already have someone in mind, so there are no worries. He is known as Dordoni Alessandro Del Socaccio, a member of the Privaron Espada."

"Privaron? As in former Espada?"

Aizen nodded slightly. "Correct," addressing everyone, he continued. "Now then. Having tested all but Orihime's combat capabilities, you are free to return to your dwellings. Kurosaki. Your schedule will stay the same, except for the addition of Spanish. Class dismissed."

Ichigo sighed, rubbing his eyes. The day was much too tiresome, with having to deal with a new assortment of annoying people. He hoped that it wouldn't get any worse.

* * *

><p>Two figures stood above a dimly illuminated lab below them, bustling with activity as a certain pink-haired scientist observed data and checked equipment. Many other Fracción simply did what they were told and stayed out of the way of their master.<p>

"So what do ya think we should do with 'em, Aizen-sama?" questioned Gin, who looked down upon the figures on the operating tables and interrupted the sound pattern of shuffling feet and beeps from monitors.

"It would be in our best interests to revive and recruit them, of course. Truly interesting, how he had split into two upon Hollowfication. There simply wasn't enough room in his soul to provide for _two_ sentient Hollows."

"Yer right about that." Gin agreed. "He really is an interestin' kid, borderline creepy."

Two eyes flickered rapidly, settling on a half-lidded, dazed expression. Their golden pupils floated around the black pools that were his sclera, barely registering the environment around him. He groaned lightly, and slowly returned to unconsciousness.

Gin's grin widened even further minutely, as he became fully amused and gestured to the figures beside the monochromatic Hollow.

"Surely Byakuya will be in fer a surprise as well."

Aizen's smile turned visibly darker, losing it's mask of pleasantry.

"As will all of Soul Society."


End file.
